CincyEats

Tonight we are going to a pot-luck-dinner at my sister’s house. I will admit I am not a fan of pot-luck-dinners. Very rarely will there ever be one at my house. It might seem weird, maybe it is weird, I don’t know . When I plan a meal, I plan a meal. I want the entree to go with the sides, plus the sides to go with the other sides.  Ideally I would tell people, if you want to bring something, here is the recipe. Make it and bring it with you. Since this is rude, I normally just say bring some beer or a bottle of wine…If you haven’t figured it out yet I am a type A personality.

Now, for my second issue with pot-luck-dinners. What should I bring? I want whatever I bring to go with what every one else brings. I don’t want to make anything too fancy or seem like I am showing off. This is normally where I stress myself out so bad I say, please just tell me what to bring. Lucky for me my brother in law is never shy and sent me an e-mail in big bold letters, WATERMELON FETA SALAD.

This might sound like an odd combination but the flavors meld together very well. On our honeymoon in Mexico I would eat watermelon and feta together for lunch, but I couldn’t get Jess to try it.  He wouldn’t believe me that people actually put these two things together.  Now that it’s watermelon season I decided to head over to epicurious.com to find a recipe.  This recipe is so simple to throw together and such a pleasant surprise to the palate. The watermelon is sweet while the feta is salty and the arugula evens it out with a touch of bitterness. If you want to make it a little more special make your own balsamic glaze by reducing (boil) 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar down to 2 tablespoons. Maybe you can take it to your next pot-luck-dinner.

Watermelon Feta Salad

• 1 5-ounce package baby arugula
• 8 cups 3/4-inch cubes seedless watermelon
• 1 7-ounce package feta cheese, crumbled
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar glaze

Arrange arugula over large platter. Scatter watermelon, then feta over. Drizzle with balsamic glaze and sprinkle with pepper…personally I like it with the watermelon on the bottom then the arugula.  Good thing it honestly doesn’t really matter.